East Carolina
Coach: Cliff Godwin
Postseason history: Seventh super regional appearance (third straight). Seeking first trip to Omaha.
Postseason route: No. 1 seed in Greenville Regional. Went 3-1, defeating Coastal Carolina in regional final.
Scouting report (anonymous report breaks down the Pirates)
“One thing I’ve learned about them since getting in the league is they’re the best team with two strikes. It’s one through nine. They have a lineup that buys in and they run starter’s pitch count up. They’re dynamic. They can hit the long ball, they can bunt you to death, they can slash. In this new age of hitting and scoring runs, the analytics would tell you they give away outs, but they score a lot of runs and that stuff plays better in college. They put pressure on a defense, and they find a way.
“On the mound—our league was like this, the conference pitcher of the year was a reliever—when you look at ECU’s pitching staff, they don’t have bona fide Friday night, first-round pick, but they have guys who can do different things. They can leverage guys in different spots, and it gives them options. It’s not your typical weekend rotation in terms of stuff. They’ve got a ton of experience. They command the fastball as well as any team we played this year.
“Their defense starts in batting practice. You watch a team go about their business in batting practice and they’re about as organized and efficient as it comes. (Associate head coach Jeff) Palumbo does a good job with their infield. It’s not just a feel-good, 45-minute window to hit and get out of there. They’re working like they’re practicing. They’ve got some athletes on the field, they can run down balls and make plays.
“Bryson Worrell is an older guy, he has experience on his side. There’s thump in the bat from both sides. He’s strong. You’ve got to make him get out of the zone. That’s something that ECU doesn’t do a ton of. You have to be OK with walking him once in a while. If you come after him enough, he’s going to do some damage.
“Carter Spivey just doesn’t beat himself. He comes right at guys downhill, cutter, four-seam, slider. He commands everything, everything seems like it’s down in the zone. He can change eye level and go up with two strikes. It’s a common theme with any good pitching staff and they do it as well as anyone, they command and don’t give you anything over the plate. He has 18 walks in 74 innings and that’s a good start…
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